This invention relates to an improved cantilever rack assembly of the type adapted to carry a plurality of articles or loads on carrying arms which are in turn mounted on a vertical support member forming a portion of the rack.
Typically, cantilever racks are well-known in the art, and are usually formed from a base assembly designed and adapted to carry at least a pair of vertical support members upstanding therefrom, the vertical support members then being provided with a plurality of both vertically and horizontally aligned carrying arms such that articles such as tubes, pipes, or other elongated articles may be positioned and carried between correspondingly opposed arms mounted on the rack. Assemblies of this type are typically shown in prior art patents such as U.S. Pat. No. 1,698,974, wherein a cantilever bar rack is shown to be formed by a base assembly carrying, in this instance, three vertical support members, which in turn are provided with a plurality of carrying arms mounted thereon. It will also be noted that the vertical support members are braced one to the other by means of a pair of brace rods denoted by the numeral "24", typically for the purpose of preventing swaying of the rack during its load configuration. It will also be noted in the aforementioned patent that each of the carrying arms is provided with an upstanding end piece thereby to prevent loads carried on the arms from spilling over the end thereof.
Another example of a cantilever rack is shown by applicant's prior U.S. Pat. No. 3,512,654, which again shows a cantilever rack formed by a pair of base members carrying opposed vertical support members, and each of the support members in turn having a plurality of cantilever carrying arms mounted thereon. It will be noted that the vertical support members are interconnected by brace members, which in this case, are in the form of horizontally aligned support bars interposed therebetween to add stability and anti-swaying features to the subject rack.
Still other examples of cantilever racks showing various locking features and the like are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,602,374, which is shown to accommodate carrying arms designed for movable positioning along the length of the corresponding vertical support members.
Still another example of a rack assembly of the type similar to various other of the prior art racks is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,827,377, wherein the base assembly is shown to be formed by a pair of C-shaped channel members having a vertical support member interposed therebetween and fixedly secured by means not recited therein.
Typically, the vertical support members are carried on the base by welding, as, for example, shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,065,089. Alternatively, the vertical support members may be fixedly secured to the base members by means of a bolt arrangement as is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,698,566.
It has been found that in many of the prior art rack assemblies, while various attempts have been made at securing the vertical support members to the bases as selected by the manufacturers thereof, nevertheless, it has been found that many of these racks still suffer from swaying characteristics when an extremely load is placed thereon. Similarly, the bracing systems which have heretofor been provided have generally been of the diagonal type, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,698,974, wherein the brace members are straight rods diagonally opposed from end-to-end as between the corresponding vertical support members, or have been in the form as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,512,654. As shown therein, a brace system is shown to be formed by horizontally aligned braces interposed between opposed vertical support members. However, it has been found that bracing systems of either type still do not prevent swaying under extreme load conditions, and therefore, it has been deemed desirable to develop further improvements to further improve the stability and anti-swaying characteristics of such cantilever racks given the fact that such racks often carry extremely heavy loads.
It has further been deemed desirable to improve upon the end cap features of the carrying arms, such that the carrying arms may be altered to provide a flush disposition from end to end. This may be desirable where the carrying arms are intended to carry squared-off tubular materials such as square-shaped tubes and the like, wherein it is not considered likely that such materials will roll off of the carrying arms.